Seminars
The consortium holds bi-weekly seminars on Wednesdays at 2:00 pm CET. Recordings of previous seminars can be accessed here.
Seminar Archive
2023 Seminars:
22
November
Upcoming Open data for improved cropland nutrient budgets and nutrient use efficiency estimationsOutline: Dr. Ludemann is a member of CPCN data working group. His presentation will give more insights on the development of the CPCN databases while highlighting recent milestones within the working group. In addition, Dr. Ludemann will highlight new field experiment databases (including www.cropnutrientdata.net) and prediction models being developed. The models will improve calculation of crop harvest index and nutrient concentrations of crop products and residues. These will enable more accurate estimation of the parameters in nutrient budgets and use efficiency measures at a local and global scale.
Speaker(s): Dr. Cameron Ludemann, Wageningen University & Research, Netherlands.
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
Speaker(s): Dr. Cameron Ludemann, Wageningen University & Research, Netherlands.
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
8
November
Exploring Slow-Release FertilizersOutline: The world population is forecasted to increase by one third or 2.3 billion in 2050 (total population 9.7 billion by 2050 as per United Nations’ “World Population Prospects 2019) despite the slower growth rate compared to the last four decades. As the population keeps blooming, food demand is also expected to rise. Fertilizers provide nutrients to plants and are often credited for the improvement in crop yield, which results in exponentially increased fertilizer use worldwide. Among the three macronutrients required (Nitrogen/Phosphorus/Potassium), Nitrogen (N) is the most crucial and essential to plant growth, and urea is the most used nitrogen-based fertilizer due to its high N content (46 wt.%) and its low cost. However, Urea is prone to losses due to poor absorbance by crops and various other means. By Exploring the slow release or coated fertilizer, these losses can be reduced and increase the efficacy of the nutrient for better productivity and helping the small holder farmers.
Speaker(s): Dr. Surendra K. Srivastava, Head of Sales and Marketing for Domestic Fertilizer Business, Indorama Eleme Fertilizer & Chemicals Limited (Nigeria)
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
Speaker(s): Dr. Surendra K. Srivastava, Head of Sales and Marketing for Domestic Fertilizer Business, Indorama Eleme Fertilizer & Chemicals Limited (Nigeria)
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
25
October
How Genesis creates a common language on soil health to accelerate the environmental transitionOutline: Founded in 2018, Genesis brings together a multidisciplinary team of agronomists, experts in Soils, biologists, data engineers, programmers, designers and business developers. Genesis is an environmental impact measurement agency with projects in development of a recognized soil health rating, based on a scientific diagnosis of soil eco-systemic functions. It provides real measures of your environmental impact that allows driving change towards a smaller environmental footprint. Genesis addresses every “bio-based” environmental challenge (regenerative agriculture, sustainable sourcing, renaturalization, credit certification, land valuation…) and for all actors of the value chain.
Speaker(s): Adrienne de Malleray, Aurélie Bacq-Labreuil, Pierre Arbelet, Genesis
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
Speaker(s): Adrienne de Malleray, Aurélie Bacq-Labreuil, Pierre Arbelet, Genesis
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
27
September
Realistic Optimism: Farmer, fertilizer & food securityOutline: Jonathan covers Meridian’s approach to supporting Malawian farmers through Demand-Driven Innovation and Ag extension services.
Speaker(s): Jonathan Atkinson, Meridian
View Seminar
Speaker(s): Jonathan Atkinson, Meridian
View Seminar
13
September
Soil Nutrient Roadmaps in sub-Saharan Africa
Speaker(s): Kevin Huard and Sonya Hoo, Boston Consulting Group
View Seminar
Speaker(s): Kevin Huard and Sonya Hoo, Boston Consulting Group
View Seminar
31
May
AgWise: an analytical framework for tailored fertilizer adviceOutline: AgWise is a framework for fertilizer recommendations, developed by experts across multiple CGIAR Centers who bring diverse expertise in agronomy, crop modeling, data science, remote sensing, and GIS. It is designed as a modular structure to promote efficient collaboration, streamline code management, and facilitate knowledge transfer. Drawing on the success of previous initiatives like AKILIMO and tailored fertilizer advice for wheat in Ethiopia, AgWise leverages both historical and current data alongside geospatial variables to generate customized fertilizer recommendations. Currently, it aims to provide tailored advice for rice, maize, potato, cassava, and beans across diverse geographies. The framework incorporates advanced statistical models, ensemble machine learning techniques, crop models, and economic optimizers to explore alternative approaches. In this presentation, we will highlight ongoing efforts to refine the recommendation framework and propose collaborative opportunities to amplify the impact of our collective work in the field of fertilizer recommendations.
Speaker(s): Meklit Chernet, IITA
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
Speaker(s): Meklit Chernet, IITA
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
17
May
Potassium: the neglected nutrientOutline: Potassium (K) has received comparably less attention than other nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous. Here we showcase cropping systems where K has become limiting and introduce a new global project that aims to assess the extend and severity of the K limitation to crop yields globally.
Speaker(s): Patricio Grassini, University of Nebraska
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
Speaker(s): Patricio Grassini, University of Nebraska
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
3
May
Supporting development and education through mediaOutline: Their presentation will cover their farm make over TV programme, Shamba Shape Up with a focus on Soil Health, Conservation Agriculture and Fertilizer Use.
Speaker(s): Sophie Rottmann and Patricia Gichinga of The Mediae Company
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
Speaker(s): Sophie Rottmann and Patricia Gichinga of The Mediae Company
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
19
April
Fighting food, fertilizer, and the climate crisis in Africa through targeted N managementOutline: Role of N in Food Security and other SDGs; Food security situation and trend of N application for crop production in Africa; Current status of N input/N output and NUE; Examples of some targeted N management approaches; Scaling climate-robust N management strategies for smallholder farmers including in Africa (AIM4C)
Speaker(s): Tek Sapkota and the CIMMYT team
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
Speaker(s): Tek Sapkota and the CIMMYT team
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
5
April
The Global Soil Doctors Programme, a farmer-to-farmer training initiative from the FAO Global Soil PartnershipOutline: The Global Soil Doctors Programme is an innovative farmer-to-farmer training programme that supports or replaces extension services where they do not exist. Soil Doctors are champion farmers trained in the principles of sustainable soil management who will then transfer their knowledge to other farmers in their community or neighboring communities. The ultimate goal of the programme is to improve soil health and promote sustainable agricultural practices. This approach has proven to be very effective in increasing farmers’ awareness of soil health issues and promoting the adoption of good practices for soil management.
The educational materials used in the Global Soil Doctors Programme are tailored to the specific needs of each community. They are adapted to local languages, soil threats, and key crop and management practices, ensuring relevance and uptake by farmers. The materials cover a wide range of topics, such as soil fertility, soil erosion, soil pollution, soil biodiversity, nutrient loss and water management. They provide practical information and guidance to farmers on how to improve soil health and maintain soil fertility over the long term.
This online platform provides support for farmers, policy makers, development planners, agricultural extension workers, NGOs, agro-dealers, private sectors and any other practitioner/stakeholder interested in transmitting the importance of soil as a vital resource.
Speaker(s): Carolina Olivera, International consultant of the FAO Global Soil Partnership
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
The educational materials used in the Global Soil Doctors Programme are tailored to the specific needs of each community. They are adapted to local languages, soil threats, and key crop and management practices, ensuring relevance and uptake by farmers. The materials cover a wide range of topics, such as soil fertility, soil erosion, soil pollution, soil biodiversity, nutrient loss and water management. They provide practical information and guidance to farmers on how to improve soil health and maintain soil fertility over the long term.
This online platform provides support for farmers, policy makers, development planners, agricultural extension workers, NGOs, agro-dealers, private sectors and any other practitioner/stakeholder interested in transmitting the importance of soil as a vital resource.
Speaker(s): Carolina Olivera, International consultant of the FAO Global Soil Partnership
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
22
March
Decision-making tools in soil management and plant nutrition on-farm research and observation plot: Between reality and challengesOutline: In this presentation, we will address a number of decision-making tools and assess their relevance and limitations for the Mediterranean and Tunisia’s agricultural conditions. Decision-making tools can be classified, based on the scale, to different levels, ranging from national and regional scale to farm scale. On a large scale, an agricultural policy can be drawn based on the governmental agricultural plans, and soil maps can be adopted as a decision-making tool and thus guide support in the acquisition and subsidies of inputs from fertilizers and seeds to their beneficiaries.
At the research level, it has been developed scientifically based standards for the crops’ requirement of the different types of nutrients and it has been developed mathematical models. In practice, agricultural extension institutions in Tunisia have developed several decision-making tools using a wide range of approaches ranging from classical techniques to modern technology. Classical techniques used, like soil analysis, are limited to 4% of the farmers in the rainy areas and 13.5% in the irrigated areas. Many young start-ups have also developed decision-making tools to manage plant nutrition and irrigation scheduling.
Although there are many approaches and available decision-making tools for managing land fertilizing, the aim is still not achieved and the farmers still manage to fertilize their lands using their own traditional practices. Steps forward are needed in developing decision support tools to make the scientific outputs in land fertilizing available for the farmers in a comprehensible and easy way
Speaker(s): Professor Mouna Mechri, Soil fertility and Plant Nutrition Specialist and Regional Representative (North Africa), African Association for Precision Agriculture (AAPA)
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
At the research level, it has been developed scientifically based standards for the crops’ requirement of the different types of nutrients and it has been developed mathematical models. In practice, agricultural extension institutions in Tunisia have developed several decision-making tools using a wide range of approaches ranging from classical techniques to modern technology. Classical techniques used, like soil analysis, are limited to 4% of the farmers in the rainy areas and 13.5% in the irrigated areas. Many young start-ups have also developed decision-making tools to manage plant nutrition and irrigation scheduling.
Although there are many approaches and available decision-making tools for managing land fertilizing, the aim is still not achieved and the farmers still manage to fertilize their lands using their own traditional practices. Steps forward are needed in developing decision support tools to make the scientific outputs in land fertilizing available for the farmers in a comprehensible and easy way
Speaker(s): Professor Mouna Mechri, Soil fertility and Plant Nutrition Specialist and Regional Representative (North Africa), African Association for Precision Agriculture (AAPA)
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
22
February
Mending the “holes” in the “pipes” to reduce soil N2O emissions from organic and inorganic fertilizer-based systemsOutline: Professor Chirinda will discuss nitrogen dynamics in organic and inorganic fertilizer-based systems in Denmark and Colombia. Data on the magnitude of N2O emissions, indicating sizes of “holes” in the “pipes”, will be presented. Solutions for mending pipe holes in organic or inorganic fertilizer-based cropping systems through improved nitrogen management will be discussed.
Speaker(s): Professor Ngonidzashe Chirinda, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P)
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
Speaker(s): Professor Ngonidzashe Chirinda, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P)
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
25
January
Cropland Nutrient Budget DatabaseOutline: Launched in November 2022, the Cropland Nutrient Budget database provides national average estimates of the nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium inputs and outputs on all cropland worldwide. The database serves as a central knowledge bank for quantifying nutrient balances and nutrient use efficiency at national to global scales, and as a foundation for monitoring the impact of nutrient use on food production, climate, biodiversity, water, and air quality.
This project is led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and IFA, in close collaboration with researchers from the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, CEIGRAM-Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Wageningen University & Research, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the African Plant Nutrition Institute. The cropland nutrient budget database is available at https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/ESB. Full description of all the data sources is available at https://fenixservices.fao.org/faostat/static/documents/ESB/ESB_e.pdf
This webinar will outline the methodology used, show some results, and discuss major areas for further improvement. CPCN can play a significant role in improving this global data resource through novel ways of collecting, processing and analyzing data.
Speaker(s): Achim Dobermann, IFA
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)
This project is led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and IFA, in close collaboration with researchers from the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, CEIGRAM-Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Wageningen University & Research, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the African Plant Nutrition Institute. The cropland nutrient budget database is available at https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/ESB. Full description of all the data sources is available at https://fenixservices.fao.org/faostat/static/documents/ESB/ESB_e.pdf
This webinar will outline the methodology used, show some results, and discuss major areas for further improvement. CPCN can play a significant role in improving this global data resource through novel ways of collecting, processing and analyzing data.
Speaker(s): Achim Dobermann, IFA
View Seminar
Download Slides (pdf)